Open Carrier Awarded $23,500 After Wrongful Arrest for Openly Carrying Handgun

I would call this one a win for gun rights advocates. I am still disappointed to hear that the police officers involved were not punished that I know of. That is where the real problem lies. Officers who do not know or respect the laws in turn disrespect the law and act tyrannical when confronted by someone exercising his legal right to carry a firearm.

Source.

[quote]In July of 2012, James Sorensen was openly carrying a handgun as he attended a gay pride event with his partner in Colorado Springs, CO.

During the event, officers confronted Sorensen, threatened him with physical violence and then finally arrested him.

The charges against Sorensen were of course dropped since open carry has been legal in Colorado for years now.

Now, Sorensen is making the city pay for their mistake. Based on open records of a settlement, Sorensen was paid $23,500 for his troubles generated by the city’s mistake.

According to 9NEWS, police say the documents they use to know the law were not up to date with the current carry laws.

During the encounter one police sergeant told Sorensen, “You’re about to get the sh– kicked out of you.”

Another officer told Sorensen to hire an attorney following the incident if he felt his rights were being violated (turned out to be good advice).

Other officers repeatedly reference a law that does not exist.

Here is the original video of the incident, as recorded by Sorensen’s partner, which was posted to Youtube.

[quote]